"Bono himself was very keen to come to Belfast and looking forward to the shows. He and the cast seemed to have a very in depth conversation about the show as well."

And, the Belfast contingent made sure to plug their own theatre to the band.

"We extended the offer to invite him to the theatre and have a look around and see one of the shows - they seemed very keen. We'll keep everything crossed."

Written and directed by Conor McPherson (The Weir, The Seafarer), The Night Alive also stars Frank Grimes, Laurence Kinlan, Ian-Lloyd Anderson and Kate Stanley Brennan.

It is a co-production between the Lyric Theatre and Dublin Theatre Festival, and opened this year’s Dublin Theatre Festival at the Gaiety Theatre.

The Night Alive is on the Danske Bank Stage of the Lyric Theatre from October 6-31, and the performance on October 9 also opens the 2015 Ulster Bank Belfast International Arts Festival.

The cast of The Night Alive

Its official description reads: "Set in Dublin, the play tells the story of Tommy (Dunbar) - a middle-aged man, just about getting by. He’s renting a run-down room in his Uncle Maurice’s house, keeping his ex-wife and kids at arm’s length and rolling from one get-rich-quick scheme to the other with his pal Doc.

"Then one night he comes to the aid of Aimee, who’s not had it easy herself, struggling through life the only way she knows how. Their past won’t let go easily. But together there’s a glimmer of hope that they could make something more of their lives. Something extraordinary. Perhaps. With inimitable warmth, style and craft, The Night Alive deftly mines the humanity to be found in the most unlikely of situations."

The original production of the play was performed at the Donmar Warehouse in London in 2013, and it has also been produced at the Atlantic Theatre in New York, where it won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play (it also received a Best Play nomination from the Laurence Olivier Awards).